


Brothers in Arms - Wing It

by starkind



Series: Iron Wings Collection [5]
Category: Batman (Movies - Nolan), DC Cinematic Universe, Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fusion, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst with a Happy Ending, Crossover Pairings, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Fighter Pilots, IronBat - Freeform, M/M, Married Couple, Military Jargon, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-22
Updated: 2017-04-22
Packaged: 2018-10-22 13:12:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10697718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starkind/pseuds/starkind
Summary: An incident over the clouds puts a damper on a special day for Tony & Bruce





	Brothers in Arms - Wing It

**Author's Note:**

> Technically this verse is finished, yet I keep coming back for more... Screw continuity - all hail the IronBat flyboys :D  
> Some minor 'technobabble' explained at the end

On their first wedding anniversary, Tony was able to present Bruce with his finished engagement gift. He had taken great pride and effort in giving their F-16s a complete overhaul, from computer systems over to new sets of tires and revised engines. It was a sunny and dry Sunday afternoon in June when two fighter jets took off from a private Stark Industries' airfield south of Point Dume.

“Just like old times, eh?” Tony's deep baritone echoed through Bruce's headphones. Wayne smiled behind his visor as Tony went into the motions of a barrel roll around his jet. “No.” He then pulled the stick back to bring his jet in a steep climb towards the sun, feeling invincible. “Better.”

For a while, they kept on engaging and disengaging in playful dogfights, low-level races across the ocean, and stunt level moves that no official USAF procedure would ever endorse. Eventually, Tony brought his aircraft closer, mindful of Wayne's F-16 jet wash. “Think we should call it quits soon.” Bruce cast longing eyes across the horizon, the sun, and the ocean underneath. “I wouldn't mind getting a refuel and staying up here.”

“And forget about our anniversary dinner? Nah, Bats, I am about to wine and dine your fine ass real good.”

“Always the subtle one, Iron.”

“Others would call me romantic, y'know?”

“Good thing I'm me.”  
  
“Touché.”

When Bruce could not get the landing gear to respond, he did not think anything dramatic yet. He kept his doubts to himself and tried again. The monitor stayed blank, indicating no initial response. Tony must have sensed something because he comm'd in. “What up?” Bruce gave a hum. “Feels like the gear or a gear door is jammed.” His husband's jet appeared from behind. “Try it one more time, I'll check.”

Bruce did as he was told, and indeed, the gear lowered normally. “Well, looks good to me. C'mon, stop stalling, honey bear, I promise we'll pencil in regular flying sessions in the future.” Stark then whooshed past to head for the tarmac first and his husband let him have it. Once the private runway was clear, Wayne brought his viper back in as well. As he was about to touch down, however, something went wrong.

The fighter jet started to buck and lean hard right without warning, almost tilting over sideways. In an instant, Betty's electronic voice was in Bruce's ear, with a _'Caution! Caution!'_ and an accompanying beep of the warning system. On instinct, its pilot slammed the throttles up into afterburner. As the burners lit, the jet fell out from under him. Bruce yanked the stick back, missing the ground by inches.

“Hey, hey, hey - what's wrong?!”

Tony, who had brought his viper to a stop and witnessed the whole incident sounded downright alarmed. The Gothamite eyed the readouts on his monitor. “Right gear's compressing normally, left gear's got a broken strut. Maybe jammed at full extension. Guess it broke out of the cylinder and collapsed." A curse over the comm. “Stay up until I know what's cooking.”

Bruce did as he was told, circling the airfield while Tony went to get a pair of StarkTech binoculars. “Wait, now I see it. Wheel and strut assembly's swinging in the breeze horizontally. Shitfuck.” Wayne cleared his throat. “Guess I'll be hanging around up here some more for now.” At his husband's calm and composed voice, Tony smacked his tongue. “How's your state? Bingo fuel?” Hazel eyes flickered to the gauge in question.

“Almost.”  
Tony suppressed another row of colorful curse words.  
“Okay, how about an arresting cable with the tail hook?”  
  
Former USAF Captain Wayne thought this through in a matter of seconds and came to a conclusion  
“No. If the left gear catches the cable first it'll spin me around and flip me over.”  
A grunt over the comm indicated that Tony had acknowledged his concerns, even if he did not like it.

“Controlled ejection then. Fastest and easiest way out.”  
At the prospect of shattering his beloved fighter jet to pieces, Bruce's mouth turned grim.  
“Definitely not interested in that. C'mon now, Tony, you can't be serious. My viper!”

A deep intake of breath over the line. “Fuck the viper, babe! I'm serious about getting you down there safe and sound, no matter what!” For a few heartbeats, neither man spoke. Bruce kept on twiddling with the onboard instruments and made up his mind. “Let me try it my own way.”  
  
“And that would be what? Fire up the EPU!”

“I don't like the smell of H-70 much. I'll bring her down on just one wheel.”

“Bruce!!”

“It'll be fine, don't worry.”

“I _fuckin worry_ , okay?!”

With a calm glimpse down left and right the tarmac, Bruce licked his lips and re-gripped the stick.

“No need to. Just get out of the way.”

He forced his breathing to remain steady, knowing fully well Tony would listen to every hitch over the comm. Bruce let his jet describe another wide arc around the airfield, to single out the tarmac to the far left for his attempted landing. With steady hands, he brought the nose a little higher and braced himself. He did not have to wait long for the impact which shook the whole aircraft.

With a squeal of rubber, the F-16 ditched down on the right wheel to which sparks flew all over the runway. As Wayne lowered it on the external tanks he could feel the jet shudder and dip to one side. A brief, hard jerk to the right, then it came to a standstill. Bruce exhaled soundlessly and switched off the still running engine. He flipped the canopy open and pulled off his helmet, relishing the breeze of fresh air on heated cheeks.

Looking around, Tony's pale, stricken face was the first thing Bruce saw as he came running across the tarmac. Wayne casually hopped out of the tilted aircraft and was about to inspect the damage done from the outside when two arms were around him before he could say anything. “Everything's okay. Hey.” Bruce kept on mumbling those words over and over as they stood locked in an embrace.

When Tony was done squeezing the air out of his lungs, he steered them away from the close proximity of the jet that started to expel smoke. It was resting partly on the tarmac, partly on the lawn. All miserable, Stark began to shake his head and wrestle out of his arms to point at the jet.

“No, it's not!! Nothing's okay! I almost lost you to a stupid, a fucking stupid mistake I made! I didn't go and replace the metering pin of the shock strut. The empty chamber filled with hydraulic fluid and compressed nitrogen just didn't show up on my scans, but I should...”

“... Tony...”

“... have never, ever let you go up there, god friggin dammit! I wish it would've been me!”

 _“... Anthony!”_  
  
The use of his real name and a sharp undertone did not fail to do the trick. Tony fell silent, biting his lip. Bruce clasped him by the upper arms and urged him on to meet his eyes. “Don't ever think about putting your life on stake instead of mine. Never. You got that?” Tony averted his gaze with a pained expression, so his husband gave a gentle shake to keep him focused and in the present.

“You gave clearance cause the jet was ready. It could've very well hit yours, too. Metal fatigue is something not even you can foresee.” A soft, defeated sigh. “No, but...” When Bruce leaned in to kiss him, he smelled of Kenzo Air and faint JP-8 kerosene-based fuel. “I want you to come take a shower with me. And I want you to fix the viper - not today, but soon, cause I'm going to fly in it for the rest of my life. Together with you.”

They walked along the lawns towards the hangar, with Bruce's arm around Tony's shoulders.  
"Tell me about the wine and dine again."  
After a while, Tony's hand found its way around his overall-clad midriff.

"Maybe we'll just order pizza and stay in bed naked for the rest of the day."  
Bruce lightly bumped into him with a boyish smirk.  
"Sounds good to me."

  
The End

**Author's Note:**

> Betty = female F-16 electronic warning system voice  
> Bingo fuel = fuel reserve / minimum fuel  
> EPU = Emergency Power Unit  
> H-70 = Hydrazine, 70 % aqueous solution used as propellant in emergency power units (EPU)
> 
> sources:  
> http://sierrahotel.net/slang-18.html  
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auxiliary_power_unit  
> http://www.hydrazine.com/propellants/h70.aspx


End file.
